50 Ways to Lose Your Heart
by Clearly Odd
Summary: 50 sentences for the pairing Dave and John.


Author's Note: It feels nice to write something again, even if it just bits of 50 different stories. Hope you all enjoy!

-/-/-

**01. Air**

The crowded floor afforded little space to move and even less to breathe freely, music pumping through their bodies and dancers writhing on all sides, but John's mouth against his gave Dave all the fresh air he needed.

**02. Apples**

"I figured, since you like apple juice so much…" John trailed off, shrugging sheepishly as Dave eyed the fresh-made apple pie with nothing short of reverence.

**03. Beginning**

Whoever this kid is, he's pretty funny, with his weird, pointy sunglasses and silly heart shirt and his always talking about irony, and you decide you want to know everything about him.

**04. Bugs**

Dave still maintained that a picnic date in the park was one of his best ideas, and ironic to the max; John still insisted that being covered in ants was not in any way romantic.

**05. Coffee**

There will be no more coffee for John, you decide, as you watch your bespectacled boyfriend run around the apartment, simultaneously cooking dinner, rearranging the furniture bit by bit, and shouting about how he's going to run out to the store because you're out of French roast.

**06. Dark**

On bad nights, when the memories became too much for the two of them, all the lights would go out and they would lie together, wrapped in each other in the darkness, just the feeling of the other in their arms enough to soothe the fraying edges of their nerves.

**07. Despair**

This wasn't how it was supposed to be, this was wrong, wrong wrong wrong- after everything, how could a damn car accident bleed the Heir off the face of the planet, and why, _why_ wasn't Dave able to fix it this time?

**08. Doors**

There were only three doors in their tiny apartment, but the noise they made when they were all slammed simultaneously by what remained of the windy thing was more than enough to let Dave know how pissed John was.

**09. Drink**

Tap water, boxes of apple juice, dollar sodas from the gas station, it was all champagne to them when they dined together.

**10. Duty**

No, it doesn't matter how tired you are, it doesn't matter that you're about to pass out, or that you haven't really slept in days, or even that he's worried about you, you simply can't go to sleep until you're sure he's safe; it's your duty to protect the Heir, after all.

**11. Earth**

Of course you missed flying, you missed it like hell, but being bound to the earth once more wasn't so bad when you took into account Dave was right there next to you on the ground.

**12. End**

When taking into account the collared shirts John had been wearing for the past few days, along with Dave's sudden preoccupation with the state of movie theater floors, it didn't really surprise Rose that neither boy remembered how the film had ended.

**13. Fall**

"I swear to god, if you let me fall, Egbert, I'll come back and haunt your ass for eternity," Dave warned his friend, tightening his grip on the front of John's shirt as the brunette responded by chuckling and hastening their flight speed.

**14. Fire**

Everything about Dave was heat and fire, everything was done with a certain purposeful passion and flame, every touch that dragged across John's skin left him singed, but he was happy to let it burn and come back for more.

**15. Flexible**

"You're such a sore loser; just admit I'm more flexible than you," You taunt as you fold up the Twister mat you had soundly bested Egbert on, only to be cut off by the aforementioned loser's mouth as he growled something to the effect of 'I'll show you _flexible_.'

**16. Flying**

You couldn't feel the ground beneath your feet anymore; all you really felt was the cool air on your skin and the chaste press of Dave's lips on your own and a sort of weightless bliss and you were certain, even though you knew you couldn't anymore, that you had to be flying.

**17. Food**

Dave wasn't much of a cook, having managed to scorch the kitchen ceiling while attempting to make scrambled eggs, and it was hard on any given to day to get John to stop what he was doing and actually remember to eat something, and they occasionally both just gave up and phoned in for pizza at 9:30 at night, but between the two of them, they somehow never went to bed hungry.

**18. Foot**

If anyone were to ask, Dave would insist he had broken his foot while fighting a horde of ninjas for Egbert's honor, and John played along, promising not to tell anyone that the blonde had dropped the couch on his own foot while they were moving.

**19. Grave**

Stirders are tough, so you didn't need John to drive you to the boneyard where Bro's (purely symbolic) grave was, and you didn't need him to walk past all the dead people with you until you located the stone that would have marked your bro's final resting place if the fucking game had given you his body back, and you certainly didn't need John to reach over and grab your hand and squeeze it tightly in his own- you didn't need him to, but it was still appreciated.

**20. Green**

It was pure happenstance that you were looking at just the right spot at just the right time, but you managed to catch a glimpse of John, bathed in the green light of the sun you and Rose had just created, tossing that bucket through a girl-shaped portal and straight at Karkat's head and, quick though it was, the lime-tinted image of your best bro, alive and safe, was enough to keep you going for now.

**21. Head**

When you wake up in the middle of the night, staring into the pitch dark that your eyes wouldn't permeate even if you were wearing your glasses, breathing heavily and on the verge of panic, it's all you can do to reach across the bed, grip Dave's arm, and assure yourself that it was all in your head.

**22. Hollow**

Dave rolled his eyes and reached for the chocolate bunny he'd been vehemently directed to by John, but not without a complaint of, "If we're gonna eat it either way, I don't think it matters if it's hollow or solid, Egbert."

**23. Honor**

"Don't be dumb, Dave," John retorted with a huff, "I'm not _just_ a bride's maid, I'm Jade's Maid of Honor, and see if you get invited to the bachelorette party _now_."

**24. Hope**

It wasn't much, just an embarrassed peck on the cheek and a request to have time to think about it, but for the first time since Dave had fallen for his best friend, he felt like he might actually have a chance.

**25. Light**

Though it might have seemed almost uncaring to some people, the way Dave cut efficiently through to the heart of your problems, you were forever grateful for the way he would shine a light on what was really important- even if you wouldn't tell him so out loud.

**26. Lost**

John liked to call it taking the adventurous route and Dave liked to roll his eyes and insist they knew where they were all along, but even when they somehow ended up in Iowa on a drive from Texas to Washington, the two would never admit to being lost when they were together.

**27. Metal**

The very sight of blood would never fail to dredge up a memory of the long-gone Davesprite's- when a heavy metal tang filled the air, twining with the scent of cooked flesh, brought together by the sight of John's still-smoking body- and though Dave dealt with it far better now than he had, he sometimes couldn't resist finding John, his John, to be sure he was okay.

**28. New**

Two men looked down into the crib with equal parts adoration and terror at the small, pink, wriggling mess it had taken them months and months to acquire and were unsure of how to proceed- this was new, so new and so strange, but it was them and it was theirs and they were sure (they hoped) they would figure it out.

**29. Old**

It was the last thing unpacked, placed ceremoniously on the bed with the pillows and the knitted afghan they'd received as a housewarming gift, and the tattered and grubby stuffed bunny given on a birthday so many years ago looked like it had never belonged anywhere else.

**30. Peace**

The seemingly constant Washington rain fell against the windows, tapping gently and further obscuring the grey light filtering down through the clouds, lulling the two boys tangled in a pile of gangly limbs on the bed off to sleep, whispering that it didn't matter what tomorrow held, that for now, all was well.

**31. Poison**

You're only teenagers, you're not equipped to handle the death and destruction you've both seen, and every time one of you gathers the other in their arms to comfort, you only drag each other down further; you are slowly killing each other, poisoning yourselves, and you can't really find it in you to care.

**32. Pretty**

"I don't know where this weird self-esteem issue came from, Egbert," Dave said seriously, pulling down his shades and squinting in the harsh strobe lights illuminating the gym where Prom was being held, "But you should know I think you're the prettiest girl here tonight."

**33. Rain**

The rain came down in harsh sheets, soaking the two boys facing off in the middle of the deserted sidewalk while thunder battered the clouds overhead, but they paid it no mind as they attempted to stare each other down, neither willing to take back what had been said, but both unwilling to walk away.

**34. Regret**

You wince as the sound of the front door slamming echoes through the empty apartment and look over to where a pair of broken aviator shades lay on the floor, wondering if you'll ever be able to fix what you've just done.

**35. Roses**

"Shut up, Egbert, it was a damn good gift," Your boyfriend just smiles and lets out a wheezy noise you're pretty sure is supposed to be a laugh; "How the fuck should I have known you were _that_ allergic to roses?"

**36. Secret**

He mumbles those three words in your ear, quietly, haltingly, like he's imparting some forbidden secret, like you don't already know what he's telling you, but you play along and whisper right back into his ear, making him flush under his overlarge glasses, _I love you, too_.

**37. Snakes**

Taking John to the reptile house was simultaneously one of his best and worst ideas to date, Dave decides as they circle past the snakes for the third time that day while John pleads, "Just one more visit to the salamanders, Dave, then we can go!"

**38. Snow**

Your first encounter with snow, on LOFAF, was brief and connected to some unpleasant memories, but you're beginning to think you might just prefer being shot to temporary death as John shoves yet another handful of the frozen stuff down your coat.

**39. Solid**

The first thing you notice when John delivers a 'tender bro embrace' unto you after you both meet is that the guy is damn _solid_; you also notice that Rose and Jade are both smirking at you, at which point you notice you've probably spent more time than is normal admiring your good bro's solidity, so you pull back while Egbert chuckles and teases, "Ladies love the hammer arms, Dave."

**40. Spring**

Neither of them are sure when, exactly, John's enforced regime of spring cleaning had devolved into reminiscing, but before they knew it, it was 10:30 in the evening and they were laughing at how horribly awkward they looked in their respective freshman class pictures while surrounded by more of a mess than they'd had to clean up to begin with.

**41. Stable**

Bro seemed pretty impressed with how quickly Egbert was able to pick up horseback riding, and you're as unsure of why that's important as you were when you first got to the stables, but you figure it works out if Bro's off your back about figuring out if John is worthy and John's off your back about figuring out if Bro actually approves of the two of you.

**42. Strange**

In the mornings, you wake up before Dave and take your time in the shower, then start breakfast when he finally hauls ass out of bed, and he starts the coffee because, for some reason, you can never do it right, and he gets the newspaper for you while you're serving up whatever you felt like making that morning, and then you both sit down and eat and drink and mumble at each other tiredly over the newspaper you mostly just pretend to read and it's all very domestic and just… strange, but you don't think you ever want it to stop.

**43. Summer**

The summer in which Dave convinced John to come visit him in Texas was possibly the most terrible either of them can remember, as John managed to end up with heat stroke, and Dave got the worst sunburn in the history of humanity, and Bro called them both morons as he drove John to the hospital, but they both still manage to regard it with some amount of fondness since they got to spend it together.

**44. Taboo**

_This isn't wrong, how could there be anything wrong with this,_ you wonder as you pull John closer to your body and he returns the embrace even as he mumbles about having to go soon so his dad won't know he's gone and, of the vast amount of things you know, and for all your "knowledge beyond your years," you just don't get why it has to be like this.

**45. Ugly**

Dave got to come visit you shortly after the game was over and he helped you take down all the wrecked and defaced posters you'd been avoiding until then, but you can still see the scrawls sneering at you, mocking you, shouting your imperfections out in neon bright colors, and you're not sure that ugliness is ever going to leave you alone.

**46. War**

They'll get to meet up sooner or later, they are both certain of that fact- they are certain that on the other side of the mess of monsters and planets and space and blood, they will meet each other for Dave's promised bro hug bump, but until then, they keep fighting.

**47. Water**

The hot water is beading up on their skin and plastering their hair to their heads in a way that would probably look silly to any outsider, but to the two young men sharing a shower that was never meant to hold more than one person nothing had ever looked better.

**48. Welcome**

It wasn't until Mr. Egbert reached out to shake his hand with a friendly smile that Dave's body released some of the tension he'd been gathering since he planned to come visit John, and the rest of the tiresome anxiety melted away when John grabbed his hand, pulled him to the kitchen that smelled like warm apples and dinner, made him sit at the table, and did his very best to make the blonde feel welcome.

**49. Winter**

The only thing about winter in Washington Dave would fully condone was the part where he and John would come in from the cold and the brunette would help warm Dave up, if only so the proclaimed coolkid would stop whining.

**50. Wood**

For five years, you've been waking up to see the familiar face, the person you love lying next to you, there for years of ups and downs and sickness and health and poverty and wealth and all sorts of other sentimental crap and, for the life of you, you're not sure you're ever going to have a way to properly thank him.

-/-/-

Author's Note: If some of you don't get the connection in 50, a couple's 5th anniversary is the wood anniversary (like the 25th is silver and the 50th is golden).


End file.
